Albion (Rum IPA)
Arbor Ales

A 500ml bottle with a BB of Dec 2012. Picked up a little while back from Trembling Madness in York. Described on the label as Freestyle Fridays #14 - an IPA brewed with all-English hops and a generous addition of dark rum during fermentation. A crazy one-off!

Poured into a tulip pint glass. Bottle conditioned. A hazy golden-amber hue with some chunky sediment and plentiful carbonation. Yields a massive head of creamy white foam with excellent retention; this slowly subsides to a thick surface layer. Nice lacing. Aroma of citrus hops: notes of lemon, lime, orange and grass. This is underpinned by light malt and earthy yeast. Slightly sweet, with a fruity edge.

Tastes of fruity aromatic hops with a dry, bitter finish. Notes of grapefruit, lemon, orange peel, lime, citrus, grass/hay, light malt, earthy yeast and stewed hops. Very dry, with a warm alcoholic hint in the background. An extremely subtle kick of rum lurks underneath the hops, but this isn't obvious. A strident bitterness upon swallowing. Mouthfeel is dry, tingly and spicy, with good body. Highly astringent. Aftertaste of bitter citrus hops and yeast.

Tasty stuff - a quality IPA. Not sure about the rum; it doesn't come through in the aroma and there is only the faintest hint in the flavour. Without knowing how much was added it's hard to interpret the brewer's intentions. That said, however, this is superb. A blend of citrus notes and some grassiness, while the malt takes a backseat to allow the hop character to shine through. Yeast esters add depth. Looks and tastes great - too bad it's a one-off. Grab one if you should see it.